Making of Notepad Using Tkinter Python
Creating a notepad using Tkinter is a great way to learn the basics of GUI programming in Python. In this tutorial, we will be using Tkinter, a built-in Python module for creating graphical user interfaces.
Step 1: Import Required Modules
First, we need to import the required modules. We will be using Tkinter for creating the GUI and the filedialog module for opening and saving files.
from tkinter import * from tkinter import filedialog
Step 2: Create a Window
Now we will create the main window for our notepad. We will use the Tk() method to create a window and then set its title using the title() method.
root = Tk() root.title("Untitled - Notepad")
Step 3: Add Text Widget
The text widget is the main component of our notepad. It is where the user will enter and edit text. We can create a text widget using the Text() method and then pack it into our window.
text = Text(root) text.pack()
Step 4: Create a Menu Bar
We will create a menu bar with the following options: File, Edit, Format, and Help. Each of these options will have a sub-menus.
menu_bar = Menu(root) # Create a File menu file_menu = Menu(menu_bar, tearoff=0) file_menu.add_command(label="New", command=new_file) file_menu.add_command(label="Open", command=open_file) file_menu.add_command(label="Save", command=save_file) file_menu.add_separator() file_menu.add_command(label="Exit", command=root.quit) menu_bar.add_cascade(label="File", menu=file_menu) # Create Edit menu edit_menu = Menu(menu_bar, tearoff=0) edit_menu.add_command(label="Cut", command=cut) edit_menu.add_command(label="Copy", command=copy) edit_menu.add_command(label="Paste", command=paste) menu_bar.add_cascade(label="Edit", menu=edit_menu) # Create Format menu format_menu = Menu(menu_bar, tearoff=0) format_menu.add_command(label="Font", command=change_font) menu_bar.add_cascade(label="Format", menu=format_menu) # Create Help menu help_menu = Menu(menu_bar, tearoff=0) help_menu.add_command(label="About Notepad", command=about_notepad) menu_bar.add_cascade(label="Help", menu=help_menu) root.config(menu=menu_bar)
Step 5: Add Functionality to Menu Items
Now we will add functionality to the menu items. We will create several functions to handle opening and saving files, cutting, copying, pasting, changing the font, and displaying the About dialog box.
# New File Function def new_file(): global file root.title("Untitled - Notepad") file = None text.delete(1.0, END) # Open File Function def open_file(): global file file = filedialog.askopenfilename(defaultextension=".txt", filetypes=[("Text Files", "*.txt"), ("All Files", "*.*")]) if file: root.title(f"{file} - Notepad") text.delete(1.0, END) with open(file, "r") as f: text.insert(INSERT, f.read()) # Save File Function def save_file(): global file if not file: file = filedialog.asksaveasfilename(defaultextension=".txt", filetypes=[("Text Files", "*.txt"), ("All Files", "*.*")]) if not file: return with open(file, "w") as f: f.write(text.get(1.0, END))
Cut Function
def cut(): text.event_generate("<<Cut>>")
Copy Function
def copy(): text.event_generate("<<Copy>>")
Paste Function
def paste(): text.event_generate("<<Paste>>")
Change Font Function
def change_font(): font = filedialog.askstring("Font", "Enter Font Name (e.g. Arial)") if font: text.config(font=(font, text.cget("height"))) About Notepad Function def about_notepad(): messagebox.showinfo("About Notepad", "This is a simple notepad application created using Tkinter.")
Step 6: Run the Application
Finally, we will run the application by calling the mainloop() method of our window.
root.mainloop()
We have created a simple notepad using Tkinter. You can copy and paste this Code into a Python file and run it to see the notepad in action. Note that this is just a basic implementation, and there are many ways to improve and customize this notepad.
Complete Code for the above functions:
from tkinter import * from tkinter import messagebox, filedialog # Create Window root = Tk() root.title("Notepad") root.geometry("600x400") # Create Text Widget text = Text(root, wrap=WORD) text.pack(expand=True, fill=BOTH) # Create Menu Bar menu_bar = Menu(root) # Create File Menu file_menu = Menu(menu_bar, tearoff=0) file_menu.add_command(label="New") file_menu.add_command(label="Open") file_menu.add_separator() file_menu.add_command(label="Save", command=save_file) file_menu.add_command(label="Save As...", command=save_file_as) file_menu.add_separator() file_menu.add_command(label="Exit", command=root.quit) menu_bar.add_cascade(label="File", menu=file_menu) # Create Edit Menu edit_menu = Menu(menu_bar, tearoff=0) edit_menu.add_command(label="Cut", command=cut) edit_menu.add_command(label="Copy", command=copy) edit_menu.add_command(label="Paste", command=paste) menu_bar.add_cascade(label="Edit", menu=edit_menu) # Create Format Menu format_menu = Menu(menu_bar, tearoff=0) format_menu.add_command(label="Font", command=change_font) menu_bar.add_cascade(label="Format", menu=format_menu) # Create Help Menu help_menu = Menu(menu_bar, tearoff=0) help_menu.add_command(label="About Notepad", command=about_notepad) menu_bar.add_cascade(label="Help", menu=help_menu) # Add Menu Bar to Window root.config(menu=menu_bar) # Cut Function def cut(): text.event_generate("<<Cut>>") # Copy Function def copy(): text.event_generate("<<Copy>>") # Paste Function def paste(): text.event_generate("<<Paste>>") # Save File Function def save_file(): global file if not file: file = filedialog.asksaveasfilename(defaultextension=".txt", filetypes=[("Text Files", "*.txt"), ("All Files", "*.*")]) if not file: return with open(file, "w") as f: f.write(text.get(1.0, END)) # Save File As Function def save_file_as(): global file file = filedialog.asksaveasfilename(defaultextension=".txt", filetypes=[("Text Files", "*.txt"), ("All Files", "*.*")]) if not file: return with open(file, "w") as f: f.write(text.get(1.0, END)) # Change Font Function def change_font(): font = filedialog.askstring("Font", "Enter Font Name (e.g. Arial)") if font: text.config(font=(font, text.cget("height"))) # About Notepad Function def about_notepad(): messagebox.showinfo("About Notepad", "This is a simple notepad application created using Tkinter.") # Run Application root.mainloop()
Output:
Advantages of making a notepad application using Tkinter:
- Easy to use: Tkinter is a simple and easy-to-use graphical user interface (GUI) library, making it easy to create a notepad application with basic functionality.
- Cross-platform: Tkinter is a cross-platform library, which means that the notepad application can be used on any operating system that supports Python and Tkinter.
- Customizable: Tkinter provides a lot of options to customize the look and feel of the notepad application, allowing users to choose their preferred font, size, color, and style.
- Extendable: Tkinter can be easily extended by adding more functionality to the notepad application, such as search and replace, spell-checking, and syntax highlighting.
Disadvantages of making a notepad application using Tkinter:
- Limited functionality: While Tkinter is easy to use, it may not be suitable for more complex notepad applications that require advanced functionality.
- Limited design options: Tkinter provides a limited set of design options, which can make the notepad application look outdated or unappealing to some users.
- Limited platform integration: Tkinter may not integrate seamlessly with some operating systems, which can result in compatibility issues or a less polished user experience.
- Limited community support: Compared to other GUI libraries, the Tkinter community is relatively small, which can make it harder to find resources or support when developing a notepad application.
In conclusion, creating a notepad application using Tkinter is a simple and effective way to create a basic text editor with essential functionalities such as opening, saving, and editing text files. Tkinter provides an intuitive and user-friendly interface for the application, allowing users to easily manipulate the text and customize the application's appearance to their preference. While the functionality may be limited, Tkinter can be extended with additional features such as search and replace, spell-checking, and syntax highlighting, depending on the developer's requirements. Overall, creating a notepad application using Tkinter is a great starting point for developers new to GUI programming or those looking to create a simple, lightweight text editor.